I received this pamphlet from P&R Publishing hoping to review the resource and hopefully give me and others help in dealing with domestic abuse situations. The pamphlet is only 18 pages long and took less than 30 minutes to read (and I am a slow reader), the authors are some of the best counselors in the field of biblical counseling: David Powlison, Paul David Tripp, and Edward T. Welch
For anyone either in a domestic abuse home or helping to counsel someone in an abuse situation I highly recommend this little book. It would be a great tract to lay out somewhere in the church probably in a place where others can find it but where someone can still privately take it without worrying others will see and so protect the privacy of a potential victim. Pastors are more likely to be involved in these situations if happening with a family in the church and this would be a great resource for pastors and laymen alike.
The book is broken into two parts The first part of the book, written by Ed Welch, is about helping the victim. Welch offers sound advice on how to love them like Christ who is a “refuge for the oppressed” (psalm 9:9) and “listens to the cry of the sufferer”. Listening to the victim seems obvious to anyone but often this is either not done well or not at all. Handling someone being abused is a sensitive situation and should be handled with care but someone should not avoid getting involved because they feel inadequate, Welch’s teaching here will give you great assistance and sound advice. The second part of the book is written by Powlison and Tripp and is on Helping the Abuser. I know for many of us the last thought we have in our minds when dealing with a domestic abuse is helping the abuser. I’m sure some of you would rather give the abuser a taste of his own medicine but this is far from the mind of Christ who chose not to give us a taste of what we deserved. A violent man needs to be confronted and then lead to repentance. Since most abusers tend to be master manipulators this task can be both intimidating and very difficult. Violence is usually the result of other heart sins such as selfishness and irritability these sins need to be confronted as well since simply dealing with the physical outburst may simply be treating the symptom and not the source. Relief may come for a time but if the heart issues aren’t dealt with then the abuse is likely to return. This second section is very helpful and offers many pieces of advice to aid in dealing with this difficult task.
Even if you aren’t involved in any way with a domestic abuse case I would still recommend you read this book to equip you with the proper tools so that you are able to help someone when such a case is brought to you. This is a great resource to have in your home and for churches to make available.
I received a copy of this book from P&R Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
Perusal of Truth 